But interestingly the vast majority of consumers would be hard pushed to name a single brand deriving from these countries. The exception in Asia is of course Japan who are extremely brand savvy but interestingly even the Japanese find it difficult to gain credibility in some premium product sectors.
Consumer perception of a brand has a strong association with its country of origin. Although you might buy a TV set made in South Korea, most of us would only do so if it were endorsed with a European or Japanese brand logo. Russia is perceived as crap for cars while Germany is good, but in reality Russia as a leading technological force capable of launching manned rockets and building space stations.
So are countries like China missing a trick? Well, yes and no. Chinese companies are not blind to the fact that the West have for many years used them, effectively for cheap labour, so that Western companies can build brands which "justify" massive profit margins. This can't last forever.
An interim solution is to snap up Western brands, which already have heritage and credibility. Chinese companies were among the frontrunners in purchasing Rover. Not a great prize some would argue. I am sure there is an old Chinese proverb that says, "You can't buy a good car company -- the good ones are not for sale!" But there is probably another that says "Don't worry, a Rover in the hand is worth two Chinese car companies in the bush" Even though, from a UK consumer's perspective, the Rover brand has limited desirability it still represents a platform to work from.
The long-term solution is for Asian companies to start building brands that, in the fullness of time, will gain credibility by poaching expertise from the West. After the Second World War, the US acquired German technicians previously engaged in designing and building "V" terror weapons to accelerate its space program. When Neil and Buzz first stepped on the moon it was the embodiment of the American dream but the route to getting there was dependent on a single-minded determination to succeed, irrespective of whether the expertise was homegrown or bought in.
I predict Asian companies will take a similar route to obtaining their goals by buying in Western knowledge of how to create and build brands. This is borne out by the amount of work that British designers and brand developers are now securing in this arena.
Branding is not a mystical art it can be learnt or acquired. Gaining brand credibility and overcoming preconceptions about the nationality of a brand is a challenge but it is by no means impossible. When I was a boy it was a real rarity to see a Japanese car on the road and most car buffs thought them unworthy of serious consideration. But how times change. Japanese car brands and models now offer all things to everyone, from a compact Suzuki to a luxury Lexus.
In 10 years time I believe we will see huge change with much more aggressive and confident brands emerging from Asia because ultimately they can buy in and learn what we in the West have, but we can't have what they have -- massive and cheap human resource.
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